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A police officer in the Sandy Row area during the disorder in August 2024. Photo by Kelvin Boyes, Press Eye
THE PSNI have been criticised for their “resistance” in recording data on paramilitary involvement in race hate crime.
A leading victims charity said that paramilitaries were allegedly involved in at least 27 race hate crimes last year.
One victim told The Detail that a racially-motivated arson attack on his shop last year was orchestrated. He also described facing extortion from paramilitaries.
Senior police officers have highlighted paramilitary involvement in racist attacks, including following the outbreak of anti-immigration rioting in August 2024.
However the force said it does not record how many race hate crimes involved paramilitaries.
Geradline Hanna, the Northern Ireland commissioner designate for victims of crime, said the PSNI should begin to record and publish this data.
“In order to support victims, we must understand the issues they are facing and to do that our whole criminal justice system has to get better at collecting the right data,” she said.
“This is particularly important for victims of hate crime where a paramilitary or organised crime member and/or organisation is alleged or perceived to be involved.”
Ms Hanna said the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) and the Executive Programme on Paramilitarism, Criminality and Organised Crime, should also record this data.
Victims of crime commissioner Geradline Hanna. Photo courtesy of Ms Hanna
Figures
Michael Avila, manager of Victim Support NI’s hate crime advocacy service, said their system of capturing this data is “not perfect” and there are likely more cases than the 27 recorded for 2024.
But in the absence of any official data “we can stand behind the fact that we are trying to record it as often as possible,” he said.
Mr Avila said that those carrying out racist crimes may themselves be under coercive control of paramilitaries, rather than members of those organisations.
“So there's a bit of distance created between the paramilitary leadership itself, and the actual people carrying out the intimidation. Most cases would fall in that category.”
Victim Support have thus called for a “top down” approach to dismantle paramilitary groups, he said.
Mr Avila said the attacks on shops in the Sandy Row area of Belfast last August had “absolutely been orchestrated.”
“You could say whether it is organised by paramilitaries or if there's some sort of distance there, but it is organised.”
The manager of one of the Sandy Row shops that was attacked said he had been previously threatened by paramilitaries.
Mohammed Bashir (29), manager of Sham Supermarket which was burnt down during the rioting, said the police should go after those who had orchestrated people to attack his shop.
“Go and catch the people who are responsible”, he said.
“You know who those people are, but you don't have the power to stop them. Because they (PSNI) are scared of their power. They cannot face them, even the police, they cannot face them.”
A 23 year old man has been charged with offences relating to the arson attack.
In August, the BBC reported that the PSNI were investigating the claim that people with links to paramilitaries were orchestrating young people to riot.
The force did not respond to a question about the outcome of that investigation.
Mohammed Bashir. Photo by Luke Butterly
Intimidation
Mr Bashir also said that men claiming to be paramilitary members had demanded protection money from the shop, prior to a previous arson attack in April 2023.
“When we opened the shop there were some people asking us to pay money for them, but we refused,” he said.
“They said ‘‘If you don't close the shop, we will burn the shop.’”
A PSNI spokeswoman said that allegations of intimidation were explored as part of the wider criminal investigation into the arson and related offences:
“Reports at that time did not provide information in which to progress an investigation into financial exploitation.
“Police would be very keen to speak to anyone with any information in relation to this matter, that would help progress an investigation.”
They also said a 55-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of offences including arson and threats to kill following the April 2023 attack, and a report was forwarded to the Public Prosecution Service.
Mr Bashir said that the once thriving shop has not reopened since the August 2024 attacks.
“The business was getting more successful year after year,” he said.
“And it was really good, you know, but now it's gone.”
PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher. Photo by Jonathan Porter, Press Eye
Paramilitary backgrounds
PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said at the December meeting of the Policing Board that the police did not see paramilitary "coordination" of the August racist riots.
However, he said that some suspects had paramilitary "backgrounds":
“We did see people were arrested with a background with paramilitaries. But we didn’t see any coordination from paramilitaries with that.
“Simply, individuals who previously were involved with that (paramilitary) activity who were arrested as part of the 50-odd people who we suspected of being involved in those crimes.”
The Detail asked how many of the suspects had such paramilitary backgrounds, but the PSNI did not respond.
The Detail also sent several freedom of information (FOI) requests to the PSNI for figures on how many race hate crimes had suspected paramilitary involvement.
However the PSNI refused to answer, on the grounds it would be too expensive.
Following a recent request, the PSNI said it would take approximately 15 minutes to examine each file, which would thus exceed the time limit under FOI law.
When The Detail sent a new request regarding a smaller number of cases, the PSNI then said it would take 30 minutes per file, therefore again exceeding the time limit.
Daniel Holder, director of the Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ), said “there has been resistance in providing data when it is clearly known.”
"There is a long sorry history of official obfuscation of data relating to the involvement in racist attacks by elements of paramilitary groups,” he said.
"If this information was in the public domain it would give a much clearer picture as to the extent of the involvement of particular paramilitary organisations and factions in racist intimidation and violence.”
Mr Holder also referred to a recent report from the United Nations which called on authorities to “systematically collect information” relating to “paramilitary racist violence and intimidation against ethnic minorities and migrants in Northern Ireland.”
Patrick Corrigan, from Amnesty International Northern Ireland, said the PSNI already “publish a plethora of crime data, but we still have no official figures about paramilitary involvement, and which paramilitaries, in race hate crimes.”
“If we don’t record and map the problem, how can we ever hope to solve it?”
Racist graffiti sprayed on a house in east Belfast in 2018. Photo by Declan Roughan, Press Eye
The PSNI did not respond to a question on whether the force would now record this data.
A spokeswoman referred The Detail to previous comments made by Deputy Chief Constable Bobby Singleton in relation to the August 2024 riots:
“We are also alive to the potential involvement of individuals associated with paramilitarism in the protests and associated disorder in a number of areas in Northern Ireland.”
The PSNI have previously said it would be “very challenging” to record this data.
In response to a written question from Policing Board member Les Allamby in February 2024, the PSNI said:
“Unlike other crime types where paramilitary/organised criminal gang involvement is evident and follows a well-established pattern, this is not easily identifiable with a hate crime.”
A PPS spokeswoman said recording potential paramilitary involvement “would require a significant and complex change to this system and there are currently no plans to do so.”
They added: “The PPS takes cases involving hate crime extremely seriously and recognises that they have a devastating impact on people and communities. We can assure the public that where cases meet our Test for Prosecution, they are robustly prosecuted at their height. “
A Department of Justice spokesman said “The Executive Programme on Paramilitarism and Organised Crime (EPPOC) does not, and has no authority to, collect official statistics.”
“What EPPOC can, and does do, is capture the experiences of those who experience paramilitary harm both qualitatively and quantitatively, via its projects. It is also encouraging reporting of crimes that are currently under-reported through its projects and public awareness campaigns.”